Book Review: Flight Behavior

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
Fiction, adult
You might like this book if you're a fan of Kingsolver's work, you are interested in stories involving climate change, or stories where women seek to change their lives.

I listened to the audiobook read by the author. Her voice was slow and soothing and her pronunciation was lovely. I saw her at the National Cathedral when she was touring to support this book, and the woman Kingsolver enchanted me. I was moved by her presentation. I appreciated what she said about the creative process and how to make beautiful things.

I give this book 3 stars on goodreads on the strength of Kingsolver's beautiful language and ability to transport me to where the story takes place, but in the end, this story frustrated me.

Unfortunately for me, this book felt a bit like JK Rowling's A Casual Vacancy. The author used her considerable skill and influence to basically just chew us all out about a pet cause. Now, as a writer, she gets to do that, but I don't really enjoy an entire book of being chided about the state of climate change. Especially when it is couched inside kind of a tired old story: the restless homemaker (Dellarobia), smarter and more interesting than everyone around her, but underappreciated and living a life far from her dreams, gets turned on to the larger world by an exotic guy with an accent, then leaves everything behind for bigger and better things.

It's a tempting storyline, because most of us live regular lives and wonder if we are missing out, big time. I've wondered myself. And I love the idea of bigger and better things. I also like the idea of being good stewards over the earth we've been given to care for. But there are better ways to get this message across to me. There are ways to spin a story, even one with moral imperative, that don't involve self-pity, guilt-tripping and regret for the relentless, sometimes boring work of simple family life.

In the course of the story, the author seems to seek to portray the working and farming folks of America as wholly dull, uninformed and unenlightened, and I didn't like that. There was one moment where she was maybe going to acknowledge that Cub's practical knowledge of how to live the life in which he was settled was admirable and allow him to show some quiet intelligence about the problems he would daily encounter,  but sigh, no, in the end, Cub was still a lumbering dullard. I wish Cub would have been given just a little more heroic shading for being the guy who shows up and gets the job done. I know, I know. He wasn't Dellarobia's match and could never satisfy her mind, but there are other storylines that could have ended up edifying the entire family instead of tearing it apart.

And so, I've proved that I have my own pet cause. We all do. It's okay. This is my second Kingsolver disappointment but I still adored Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, so I'll keep on working through her catalogue to find the gems that sparkle for me. I know that AVM has some of the same themes and the same moral imperative, so what's the diff? Maybe it's because that book was just Ms. Kingsolver's own experience. It felt authentic to me.

This one felt like an old Harlequin Romance wrapped up in a science textbook and it just didn't work for me.

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All about July, Man-Frames and Mascara

Is it really August? I'm not ready yet.

I worked a lot in July, and apparently was so busy that I forgot to notice the time passing. The nice thing was that most of it was self-employed tasks that I could do whenever I wanted.

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A Social Media Overhaul: Facebook

I've been thinking a lot lately about how I use social media. I've made some changes on Facebook, and so far, I'm pleased with the results. 

This isn't a judgement of how you use social media, and I'm not trying to send any hidden messages about individuals and their status with me. This is just what I've been doing and I share it with the sole hope that it might be useful. 

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Book Review: Global Mom

Global Mom, by Melissa Dalton-Bradford
Genre: Memoir
Audible Audiobook Narrated by the author
You might like this books if you like books on mothering, travel, life in other countries, or memoirs involving family life.

I listened to the audiobook read by the author.

This was a nice listen to a compelling story that, even though my life is has different challenges from the author's, was relatable to me. It was obvious that she loves words like I do. I don't always get my writing right, but I sure have fun with it, and I felt this author's absolute love of literature and language.

As for her "exciting" life abroad? Every family goes through changes, challenges and heartbreaks, and Mrs. Bradford handles her ups and downs in a down-to-earth yet mindful way. Beyond the layer of what a tourist sees in a foreign land, there is a population of humans living lives that are pretty much like most other human lives. If we haven't lived abroad, I think we tend to infuse life overseas with a movie-like dose of fantasy. The movies don't talk about the confusing grocery shopping, or the exhausted headache that comes at the end of a day of trying to speak a foreign language (I spent one summer in another land, so I know a little). I was glad about her appreciation of the local cultures where she found herself living. I loved that she learned the languages and honored the cultures. I could relate to her passionate mothering and her support of her husband's career. I liked that she found things to do for herself and made a life with personal meaning as she went along, rather than waiting for life to happen in some way. I was sad for her that she experienced depression, loneliness and other hard things. I love that she actively engaged in her surroundings and circumstances. If I'm to be influenced by this book, I would say that I get to do all those things too, and it might be easier for me since I live in the country of my birth. I don't have to copy her life or wish for her life.  I can make living in Suburban Washington DC as interesting as I want it to be.

It's brave to write a book, especially one that isn't made up, but instead is basically the opening up of your journal, your memories and your whole self. I put my personal stuff out there all the time on my blog, so I admire this author's willingness to share what she has experienced. I'm disinclined to criticize a memoir as much as I might fiction, because this is simply what is. Yes, she's lived a life that could induce comparison to my more ordinary-seeming life, but the fact is that she did the same everyday stuff that I do. A dirty diaper is a dirty diaper. Same with a struggling teenager or a car that needs repairs. Being in a foreign country doesn't make all that glamorous. In this book, she really just tells about how she made it all work as best she could. Like me.

Part of the story is centered around a deep and painful loss, after which she still had to keep breathing and moving and working.  I hope that if I ever got the chance to meet this author, that she would feel that I'm on her side. We should all be on each other's side, regardless of what might seem to separate us.

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Blueberries and Another Cougar in the House

Can't you just about taste them? Yesterday morning, just as the heat of the day was really rising, but before it was unbearable, my friend and I slowly made our way down her stunning rows of berry bushes, picking and talking, and then she gave all that she gathered to me. Together we picked about 6 quarts of this goodness! I cannot wait to eat some with my very own homemade yogurt. Later, I will put some in the freezer, and others will become a summery dessert or muffins or something.

I will smile again as I enjoy the unique almost-sweetness of blueberries and think of this friend. For years, with few easy chances to see each other and about 30 miles between our homes, the warm embers of friendship have quietly glowed, waiting, perhaps, for this very moment. Always there has been joy at our brief, infrequent reunions, always a sincere hug and a few moments spent catching up. As we've put effort into spending time together recently, we've reconnected more deeply and found timely support and company for the kinds of days we are both having. That matters, to have friends who understand.

After berry picking in the sun, I went home to find Evan catching up on the World Cup. He managed to not know who won on Sunday until he had a chance to watch the game. I love that when he wants to, he can shut off the constant stream of information that bombards him. It's hard to be young in this information-saturated world, and I liked that he decided to keep the Sabbath in the way that mattered to him and then enjoy the game on his own terms. In case you're wondering, he was happy for Germany, and proudly wore his German Fußball jersey the rest of the day, but he admires Lionel Messi and wished that talented Argentinian could have had a happier day.

After that, the two of us began our exploration of the BYU website and got him registered for classes and into a dorm room. He wasn't sure he would go out for school this fall, but instead might go straight out on his mission. In the last few days, he decided to change his own stars and go for Provo. To see him moving forward is a big deal, especially under his own power. He feels good about the plan, and has even received what he feels is a strong spiritual confirmation of his decision. As a parent, I would want nothing else for him but feeling certain about his decisions. It makes such a difference when, instead of feeling blind, you feel guided. A life of faith can do that for a kid (or an adult).

So today, I have blueberries to eat, flights and hotel rooms to arrange, and all of that. On top of a full day of work, both professional and personal. It's all good. Moving forward.

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